Volume 3: Dragon and Snake Movement Chapter 291: Accidental Hit
Zhang Shou's method of lobbying Xie Wanquan was very simple: every profession has its own expertise, just these five words.
He saw clearly that among scholars over the past thousands of years, there have been many outliers such as Zhang Heng, Zu Chongzhi, and Shen Kuo, but more people disdain those miscellaneous studies. Instead of letting those who are committed to official careers learn mathematics and physics, it is better to pick out geniuses from those who have no foundation and prepare for the next batch of students in Jiuzhang Hall.
You have to know that the phenomena of those later generations who were biased to the point of being outrageous were definitely not caused by the times, but rather were common phenomena over thousands of years. It was just that most of the ancients who had never received a complete mathematical enlightenment education had no chance to prove their mathematical talent.
As for those scholars who think highly of themselves, the common people who cannot read the books of sages, will not compete with them for the places of Jinshi, and will never enter the official career, even if they learn a little arithmetic, some strange things, and then learn to operate or even study those strange machines, they will definitely not be able to make a big difference.
He was not the type of person who could study philosophy and classics and history, or calmly lecture to real scholars, so he could only try to slowly expand from the bottom up to see if he could use a sufficient base to lay a solid foundation for a subject.
Those talented people with mathematical talents who emerge from the grassroots may not be able to obtain any high positions or dominate the court, but this is not shameful, just like countless Western scholars running around to the doors of nobles and wealthy businessmen to receive funding.
Because after such silent influence, there will always be oddities like Lu Sanlang in the official class, and there will always be people like Zu Chongzhi and Zhang Heng whose skill trees have opened up a large number of side branches, and they are also geniuses among the literati, and they will gradually pay attention to those fields.
Of course, the most important thing is that even Ge Yong, the imperial teacher who likes to be called the master of mathematics, has not been able to do it before. He does not want to rashly fight against the stone with an egg. Even though Lu Wan listened to his nonsense for the time being, the emperor would still issue an order to retain him several times. Whether Lu Wan would really take on this big stall depends on the results of the two places hundreds of miles south of the capital!
Zhang Shou fooled Xie Wanquan for a full quarter of an hour by presenting facts and reasoning with him, and then he finally sent him away . Then he glanced at his spacious study, silently counting the various textbook knowledge points he had accumulated based on his memories during his three years in the countryside, as well as the basic mathematics textbooks he had compiled before, and the first two volumes of simple physics that he had just started to compile. He felt that he still had a long way to go.
Handwritten textbooks are really killing me, and this is all thanks to his memories and accumulation from the past three years! Don’t be fooled by the piles of books on top. In fact, if modern printing technology is used, his handwritten math, physics and chemistry books probably can’t fill up a bookshelf. People who are used to typing have to change to using a brush. How can it be described as ecstasy?
Xie Wanquan left Zhang Garden with the fear of dealing with the scheming Minister Lu again, and the complicated thought that he might do another useful career without returning home. Not long after he left, Zhu Er excitedly entered Zhang Garden with Ah Liu. As soon as he crossed the threshold, he looked around and blurted out a sentence.
"This house is okay, otherwise I can't even turn around, how can I live here!"
But Ah Liu seemed not to hear Zhu Er's sigh that a full man does not know the hunger of a hungry man, nor did he pay attention to Old Liu who came over to greet him with a smile on his face. Instead, his eyes swept to a very conspicuous lame man among the doormen behind him, and then he looked at the other three young men of eighteen or nineteen.
Seeing that they were trying to stand up straight and coming forward with high spirits, completely different from the always slippery and unruly Old Liu, he nodded slightly to the lame An Lu to show his satisfaction.
Although Zhu Er's status was more noble, he didn't care about Ah Liu at all and treated him more attentively. Until Ah Liu didn't say much to the doormen and walked quickly inside, he hurriedly followed, still pestering him as he walked.
"Sixth brother, can I call you Sixth Master? Please be kind and remind me. If I can't establish my reputation as a good farmer, and my father and my eldest brother really ask me to enter the first class in the future, I will be doomed! Cangzhou..."
"Shut up!" Ah Liu suddenly stopped and stabbed Zhu Er in the face with his sharp eyes. Seeing that he really shut up immediately and dared not say anything, he said calmly, "You will get what you deserve."
Zhu Er had dealt with Ah Liu many times, and he immediately understood the implication of Ah Liu's words - it was nothing more than that people like Lu Sanlang and Zhang Chen could still get good opportunities and benefits, let alone you are his brother-in-law?
He was so happy that he quickly caught up with Ah Liu who was still walking forward. But after walking a few steps, his stomach growled loudly. He realized that he had completely forgotten about eating lunch today. He suddenly felt weak and sweat started to flow down his forehead. At this moment, he saw Ah Liu suddenly turn around and grab him by the collar.
Zhu Er was startled for a moment, but before he could ask the reason, Ah Liu suddenly picked him up and rushed forward. He was dragged forward involuntarily, and when he came to his senses, he was already in a large yard.
Seeing Ah Liu let go of his hand, he quickly walked to the door of a house on the east side, lifted the curtain and looked inside, then said something. He was still frightened and quickly pulled his clothes, muttering to himself that it was like this every time, and then he smelled a fragrance.
In an instant, he felt even weaker than before, even though he was already hungry. He wanted to follow the scent, but his legs were weak and he couldn't even take a step. At this moment, the door curtain moved, and an elderly woman brought a plate with several steamed bun-like snacks piled on it. The tempting aroma he smelled before was coming from the plate.
Zhu Er swallowed hard and saw the kind and gentle woman walk straight to him and bring the plate to him with a smile. He could no longer care about anything else and stretched out his hand to grab one and put it in his mouth. But in an instant, he was burned and screamed. But after gasping for air, he suddenly came to his senses.
"What kind of steamed bun is this...it's delicious, no place else can make it as delicious as this!" He was so hungry that he didn't mind the heat. He grabbed and swallowed most of it in just a few bites. Only then did he feel that the feeling of almost fainting was gradually getting better.
Ah Liu walked over leisurely and said calmly, "Mrs. Xu's human meat buns are of course delicious."
Seeing Zhu Er was stunned at first, and then threw the steamed bun in his hand into the air as if he had been electrocuted, Ah Liu grabbed it and stuffed it back into Zhu Er's mouth like lightning, then said calmly: "I'm kidding, you eat first, and we'll talk about other things later."
After saying this, Ah Liu put down Zhu Er, who was speechless and had a steamed bun in his mouth, and went straight to the study. When he found the place, he stood in front of the door for a while, knocked on the door frame to make a sound, and then lifted the door curtain to go in. He saw Zhang Shou flipping through a book quickly. He raised his head when he heard the noise, and was stunned when he saw him.
"A-Liu? How come you're so fast?"
Zhang Shou couldn't help but pinch his fingers, wondering if he had miscalculated. From the capital to Xingtai, and then back from Xingtai... Even if it was an expedited 800-li trip, it would take a while, not to mention that Ah Liu not only had to send Zhang Chen, but also Zhao Si and Luo Xiaoxiao, as well as some tools and equipment?
Seeing Zhang Shou's expression that looked more like shock than surprise, Ah Liu just thought it was very interesting and smiled slightly. Then he said nonchalantly, "Zhang Chen asked me to take him home secretly before, but we ran into his father."
So that's how it is. Zhang Chen said that he was not on good terms with his father, but in fact he was still thinking about him. Come to think of it, this father and son are really awkward!
When Ah Liu mentioned Duke Qin Zhang Chuan, Zhang Shou did not think of how he pushed Zhang Chuan to become the governor of Shuntian Prefecture, but the scene when Zhang Chuan entrusted Zhang Chen's life to him. He felt that he had never seen through this Duke Qin, who was not as good as his father in human nature, was always calm and low-key in his official duties, and was far inferior to Wang Datou's vigorous and resolute work in Shuntian Prefecture.
So he couldn't help but ask with interest: "And then?"
"When Duke Qin saw Zhang Chen, he asked a few questions, but Zhang Chen deliberately looked unruly." When talking about that scene, Ah Liu's expression gradually became more vivid and he spoke more. "As a result, Duke Qin casually sent ten guards to Zhang Chen and asked them to keep an eye on his son. Since someone was escorting Zhang Chen to Xingtai, I left Zhang Chen behind thirty miles outside the capital and went to Cangzhou by myself."
Zhang Shou couldn't help but hold his forehead. With the guards specially given to Zhang Chen by Qin Guogong Zhang Chuan, he really didn't need to worry about Zhang Chen's safety. One or two of these guards might not be able to beat Ah Liu, but ten of them together... well, they should, might, probably, maybe be able to beat him!
He knew that Ah Liu didn't like to take the ordinary path! Speaking of this evil star going to Cangzhou, the eldest prince wouldn't lose any troops, right? Wouldn't the flowers and plants be burned or destroyed? Previously, Zhang Chen pretended to be the second prince's men and beat away the eldest prince's men. It was difficult for him to explain in front of the emperor. Would Ah Liu cause even greater trouble?
The more Zhang Shou thought about it, the more his head hurt. But the incident had definitely happened. He could only calm down and ask, "What on earth did you do in Cangzhou?"
"I just watched a few lively events and strolled around the market." Ah Liu answered very confidently, and then looked at Zhang Shou calmly and innocently, "Really, I saw a group of textile workers making trouble, protesting against a 20% drop in wages, and they wanted to lay off workers. The eldest prince colluded with the Cangzhou government and those wealthy families, and set fire to the houses of several leaders."
Zhang Shou's heart skipped a beat. At the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the countless machines that liberated people from manual labor did not receive a big applause, but first faced the test of blood and fire. The reason was simple: producing the same amount of things no longer required so much manpower, so naturally, the workshop owners fired the workers, and many workers became unemployed.
And now, this road that has just started has also encountered the same problem. However, the unrest of the textile workers was suppressed by the powerful at the initial stage. This is only Cangzhou, not Jiangnan where the textile industry is more developed!
He gently closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, his initial thoughts had been suppressed. He asked in a deep voice: "What happened after the house was burned? Were the leading spinners arrested?"
"Of course they didn't catch him." Ah Liu's answer was still clear and concise. "I placed the man in another place and hung the thugs on the top of the city wall."
I knew it! I knew this guy definitely didn't just watch the fun! Zhang Shou had this thought in his mind, and then he forced himself to change the question and asked, "What did you see when you went to the market? Was the price of cotton yarn very low, or was the price of cotton rising? Did it affect the price of cloth?"
"The price of cotton yarn is said to be the same as before. I have inquired about it. Because the new cotton has not been picked yet and the cotton in stock is limited, several large households with the most spinning machines are gradually replacing their machines and controlling the output of cotton yarn by laying off spinners. I heard that they are taking advantage of the waterway and sending people to buy raw cotton from Jiangnan."
Because the matter was of great importance, Ah Liu was no longer as frugal with words as he usually was, but explained it clearly. Seeing that Zhang Shou's face was normal, and there was no worry in his brows, but a bit of mockery, he remembered what he had just mentioned to Zhu Er, and suddenly said: "I went to the famous Xiangshi Street in Cangzhou and found other things besides pepper and frankincense."
He paused, then said in a somewhat uncertain tone: "That should be the tomato... no, ketchup that you mentioned in Qingfeng Xulai Hall?"
After the initial daze, Zhang Shou was suddenly choked by his own saliva, and the cough was earth-shattering, and it took a long time to finally stop. After finally getting rid of the painful choking cough, he immediately straightened up, stared at Ah Liu and asked sharply: "Are you sure, it's really ketchup?"
"Yes!" Ah Liu answered very frankly, "I was curious, so I bought some to try. It was so sour that it almost made my eyebrows fall off. In addition to ketchup, there were also peanuts. They were fried, crispy and delicious, with a layer of red coating on the outside. You can peel them and eat them, or eat them in one piece. Because I didn't have time, I didn't continue to inquire, I just made a note of the sea merchant shop."
If there was only ketchup, Zhang Shou might have thought that everything was just a coincidence. However, Ah Liu said that there were also fried peanuts, so he could no longer deceive himself.
Tomatoes and peanuts were all names given to American crops after they were introduced to China by foreign ships. It made no sense for them to suddenly appear on the market with the same names when America had not yet been discovered! In other words, Emperor Taizu's fleet really reached America...
Did they take the long but slightly safer route to the west, or the shorter but more difficult route to the east?
He suppressed his excitement, stared at Ah Liu for a long time, and finally smiled bitterly: "You are always quiet, but I didn't expect that you not only have a good memory, but also are a lucky star! This time in Cangzhou, you really made the right choice!"
